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 | Braga Downtown car rental - Travel Guide |  |
BRAGA, the tourist office pamphlet claims, is Portugal's answer to Rome. This clearly is going over the top - though it illustrates the city's ecclesiastical pretensions. Founded by the Romans in 279 BC, Braga was a bishopric before being occupied by the Moors. It was re-conquered early in the eleventh century and by the end of the century its archbishops were pressing for recognition as "Primate of the Spain", a title they disputed with Toledo over the next six centuries. It is still Portugal's religious capital - the scene of spectacular Easter celebrations with torchlit processions and weirdly hooded penitents.
You won't be able to miss the Archbishop's Palace, a great fortress-like building, right at the centre of the old town. In medieval times it covered a tenth of the city and today easily accommodates the municipal library and various faculties of the university. Nearby is the Sé, which like the palace encompasses Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque styles. It was founded in 1070 and its south doorway is a survival from this earliest building; its most striking element, however, is the intricate ornamentation of the roofline, executed by João de Castilho, later the architect of Lisbon's Jerónimos Monastery. A guided tour of the interior takes you through three Gothic chapels, of which the outstanding specimen is the Capela dos Reis (King's Chapel), built to house the tombs of Henry of Burgundy and his wife Teresa, the cathedral's founders and the parents of Afonso Henriques, founder of the kingdom. Beyond the chapels is the cathedral museum - one of the richest collections in Portugal, but displayed like a junk shop. |
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